The Boy with the Pan Flute
by NinjaMonkeyGirl2013
Summary: Peter Pan is, most definitely, ruthless, devilish, and, above all, heartless. But how did he get to this point? He had to have a heart at some point in his life. We saw the version of his past from "Think Lovely Thoughts" but here, that's null and void. This is my rewrite of Peter Pan's backstory from before he was a demon, and back when he was just a boy. AU
1. Prologue

**Monkey: So there seems to be a _small_ amount of disappointment with the reveal of Peter Pan's identity . . .**

**(outside in the OUAT fandom, there are riots and mobs made up of hundreds of fangirls who are outraged at the revelation)**

**Monkey: . . . so I decided to write my version of his backstory! I'm considering this an AU since the canon is technically . . . well, if you haven't seen the episode, then I won't spoil it. Let's just say, that riot outside isn't going away any time soon. Leo! Take it away!**

**Leo: Monkey doesn't own Once Upon a Time, or us . . . so, what do you own?**

**Monkey: The idea? The dialogue? I don't even know anymore.**

**Nico: Well, review, then.**

**Monkey: No! Be more enthusiastic. Like Leo.**

**Leo: *takes a deep breath* _REVIEW!_**

**Monkey: Exactly.**

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The boy curled himself in a ball, his knees to his chest, and his hands clutched to his ears, trying desperately to drown out the seemingly endless screams. The doctor had said everything was going to be fine, but it didn't feel like it. He silently prayed to every god and goddess he could think of until there was another ear-shattering scream. Tears threatened to spill, but he held them back, squeezing his eyes shut. It was so painful and it seemed to last forever, but finally it ended when the cries of a baby could be heard.

He released his grip on his ears and saw his father coming out of the room, grinning like a mad man. He looked extremely tired and worn out with specks of blood on his clothes, but his eyes were glowing. With what, the boy didn't know. He gestured for the boy to go into the room, which he did without hesitation. The doctor held a small, bright red baby in his arms. There was a lot of blood, a traumatizing amount, but he managed to ignore that and focus on his new baby brother.

"James, dear . . ." his mother said weakly. He looked over at her and saw how tired she was. Sweat coated her skin and her eyes held this exhaustion that he'd never seen before, but she too was glowing.

"Yes, Mama?" he replied.

"How would you like to give your little brother his first bath?"

He nodded speechlessly, the words unable to come to him. The doctor gave him instructions on how to do it properly and the baby continued to wail. When he asked why the baby was still crying, the doctor said that it meant he was healthy. When he was done, he brought the baby to his mother.

"What's his name?" he asked.

"R . . . Rumplestiltskin," she replied. "After my grandfather."

"That's a funny name."

She chuckled weakly and said, "He was a funny man."

James handed little Rumple to his mother, who held him with a smile. She looked so happy and blissful; it was hard not to smile. She whispered something to the baby that James couldn't hear, then motioned for the doctor to take the baby. She looked to James and said, "You'll be a good brother, right?"

"Of course! I'll teach him how to read and write and all sorts of different games that you and father taught me," he replied energetically, holding onto her hand.

"Good," she sighed. "I want you to be a good brother to Rumplestiltskin. He will need you."

"I will."

"I love you, James." She closed her eyes and tightened her grip on James' hand.

"I-I love you too, Mama, but I don't understand. Why . . .?"

Before he could continue, her hand went slack and she didn't move again. James gently shook her shoulder and said, "Mama? What's wrong? Mama?"

His father went inside and saw what was happening. The doctor checked over his mother, only to find that she wasn't breathing. The father scooped up James into his arms and tried to carry him out of the room, but the boy thrashed about, refusing to leave his mother's side.

"_MAMA!_"

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**Monkey: And that was the prologue! Hope you guys liked it! And if you are writing any sort of Peter Pan fan fiction and you happen to not have any ideas for his revamped backstory (because you don't like the canonical one) then feel free to use this! Just, give me credit, of course.**

**Notes of the chapter:**

**1) Yes, in this story, Peter's pre-Neverland name is James. I decided to give him that name because it's a nod at the writer to the original Peter Pan play, James Mathew Barrie, or JM Barrie.**

**2) I don't know what actually happened to Rumple's mom, it was never said in the show, so I assume she's dead. I'm pretty sure she is. Or she left Malcolm.**

**Monkey: Hope you liked and don't forget to leave a review in the pretty box below!**


	2. Chapter 1

**Monkey: I just realized that there's already a James in the show. Well, there's already another Peter! I think we can survive with two of each. Now to the review replies!**

**skylark:** Thanks! And of course I'm going to be writing more. What kind of a writer would I be if I didn't?

**AlexandreaLily107:** When you say a lot of thought went into this, do you mean a bunch of ideas I got in the middle of class that I strung together into a somewhat cohenrent story? If so, then you are spot on!

**Dreamer-Girl96: **There, there *hands tissue* it'll be okay.

**Monkey: Of course, I don't own OUAT. So don't forget to REVIEW!**

* * *

A lot can happen in just one year. Like, having to leave your home village because your father spent all his time and money at the tavern to get wasted and gamble. Then come home just to yell at your brother, but not actually _do_ anything.

This was the life James lived after the death of his mother. His father, Malcolm, spent all of their money drinking and gambling at the tavern to try and forget the pain. He'd constantly yell at him and Rumple that it was their fault that their mother had died, even though all they did was merely exist. But he'd never hit them. He'd raise a hand every now and then, but he'd never do anything. Sometimes, James wished that Malcolm would hit him. Just once. At least then, he'd know that he wasn't a coward. But, he never did.

It was hard on James too. Every night, he'd have nightmares of reaching out to his mother, only to have her slip away. Part of him wanted to blame Rumplestiltskin for being born or even his deadbeat father for not taking care of her. But he didn't. Because that's what his _father_ would do. Because that's what he did.

Instead, he took care of Rumple, like how his mother wanted him to. There were some nice ladies in the village who taught him how to take care of a baby. It was difficult, and at times he wanted to give up. But seeing Rumple's bright smile and innocent eyes kept him going.

One night, Malcolm came home, but not in the expected manner. Someone had started banging on the door, so James ran down to open it before Rumplestiltskin woke up.

He opened the door and said, "Yes? Can I help you?"

Two men were holding Malcolm by the arms, practically dragging him. His head lolled around, but he seemed conscious, which only meant that he was drunk. The men looked to James. One of them looked like the tavern owner.

"Is this your father, boy?" he asked.

"Did he do something?" James replied.

"He conned all of my customers out of their money. He needs to pay them back."

All James could do was stare at his father, half-conscious and still being held by the two men. He looked at James and tried to say something, but it just came out as half-spurted jibberish. James looked back to the men and moved aside, allowing the two of them to go in. He ran into Malcolm's room where the money was kept and grabbed all the bags hidden in different spots. It took him a couple trips, but he got every last coin.

Once the two men got all their money back, they tossed Malcolm down and apologized for disturbing the evening. When they left, James just glared at his father.

"Why?" he asked. It was calm, but cold at the same time. "Why did you waste all our money? We need that to get food and take care of Rumple."

He didn't answer. So James grabbed Malcolm by the hair and pulled his head up and said, "Why?! Don't you have an answer?!"

He still didn't reply, so James let go. He too didn't say anything and just went upstairs to his room. The next day, they had to pack their things and leave. It was obvious no one would offer Malcolm a job, so they couldn't earn money to pay for food and necessities. So, they left. The road was harsh, but there were some people who took pity on them and would pick them up with wagons until they finally arrived in a new town.

It was much bigger and noisier than their old village, but the people were fairly kind and amicable. It took a while to earn enough money to buy a house, but it was worth it in the end. It was small, so he and Rumple had to share a room. That was probably best since he could just walk a few steps to calm him down at night instead of running up the stairs and down the hall to get to him. And Malcolm slept on the other side of the house, so at least James didn't have to see the mess he had to call his father. Often, at least.

But they still needed money. His father got a job at the local tavern as an entertainer. So now he could gamble, drink, _and_ con people out of their money all at once. Whatever Malcolm brought back was rarely enough to afford just one loaf of bread, the rest was most likely spent on drinking. They needed help. They needed their mother.

But they didn't have her. So, James decided to try to get a job himself. He told that to the nice lady next door, Mrs. Douglas, about his plans to get a job. She just gave him a sad smile.

"I'm not sure if you can, James," she said. "Most places won't hire a child with little to no experience."

"I'll convince them! We need the money really, really badly," James retorted.

"Well . . . I do have a friend who runs a nearby restaurant. Perhaps he could give you a job. I'll talk to him for you."

James brightened, "Really?!"

She nodded and he hugged her legs, exclaiming "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you so much!" Mrs. Douglas chuckled at the boy's enthusiasm. She found him quite adorable and she had to admire his determination.

Later that day, Mrs. Douglas paid a visit to the restaurant. Her friend was kind enough to hear the tale and agree to hire James as a bus boy. It didn't pay a lot, but James was overjoyed at the news. She agreed to look after Rumpelstiltskin while James was at work.

The next day, he went in for his first day at work. He yawned as he walked. It was quite early and he had gotten very little sleep from Rumple's crying. Somehow, he managed to get there in one piece. Inside, it was pretty empty except for one man, bringing down the chairs from the tables, leaving the stools around the tables outside.

"Hello," he said when he finally saw the boy. "You must be James."

He nodded, "That's me. What do you want me to do?"

"For now, help me take down the stools? I can handle the chairs."

"Yes, sir!"

The man chuckled, "No need for formalities. Just call me Emile."

Throughout the morning, James and Emile pulled the chairs and stools down. It wasn't much, but he was grateful to be able to do something. Eventually, it was time to open up the restaurant. Emile told James to just get the dirty plates from empty tables. The day went by pretty quickly until something happened during the dinner rush.

While James was taking some dishes to the kitchen, he saw a boy rummaging through the boxes of fruit. He was fairly tall and looked about a year older than James. He had dirty blonde hair. Literally, it had soot and dirt in it. His clothes were ratty and had holes in them. His arms were full of loaves of bread and fruits of all sorts and his eyes were wild, almost like an animal's.

For a moment, neither of the boys moved. They just looked at each other until James finally said, "Why are you stealing food?"

The boy scrunched his face into a sneer, "None of your business!"

"Hey, it was just a question." He put the dishes down at a nearby sink and looked back to the boy. "What's your name?"

"Felix."

"Nice to meet you, Felix. Why don't we play a game?"

"A game? Why?"

"Well . . ." He plucked an apple out of a box and tossed it around in his hands. "I want to make a deal. If I win, then you have to explain why you're stealing from the restaurant. Depend on the answer, I may or may not report you. But if you win, I'll pretend I never saw you. Okay?"

Felix thought about this for a minute and replied, "Fine. What's the game?"

James smirked and said, "It's a finding game. It's rather simple. I'm going to hide this apple somewhere in the kitchen. You have twenty minutes to find it."

"That's it?"

"That's it. I did say it was simple."

"Okay, then."

"Great! Just close your eyes and turn around and I'll hide the apple."

"How do I know you won't just leave and report me?"

James sighed and went to the door and locked it with the nearby key. Then he grabbed a nearby stool and used it to climb up to the hook at the very top of the door and hung the key from there, some place unreachable unless he had help. Then he climbed back down, put the stool back where it was, and looked to Felix again.

"Good?" he asked. Felix nodded, satisfied. "Then turn around and cover your eyes."

A bit reluctantly, Felix did so. Then he asked, "How long will you have to hide the apple?"

"Five minutes," he replied. "Starting now."

He walked around the entire kitchen, even though he already knew the spot to put the apple. When the five minutes ran up, he went back to Felix and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around to face James.

"It's hidden. You have twenty minutes," James instructed.

Without another word, Felix started to look around. James sat down at the stool and watched him wander aimlessly, searching for the apple. He even patted James down, only to find nothing. Eventually, twenty minutes passed and Felix came back and sighed.

"I lost, didn't I?" he asked.

"Unfortunately, yeah," James replied.

"Where was the apple anyway?"

James went to the box filled with apples and pointed inside, "In here."

"Wow . . . clever."

"Thanks. So, why were you stealing from the kitchen anyway?" He plucked two apples from the box and tossed one to Felix. Then he started munching on his own apple.

Felix took a big bite out of the apple. After he swallowed, he replied, "I have five little brothers. Our parents died a few years ago. I don't steal money or anything valuable, just food. Enough to feed us for a couple days until we can get to the next town."

"Where are you trying to go?"

"Anywhere that'll take us. I'm just trying to help them survive."

"And I'm going to call that a lie. You were just stealing for yourself, weren't you?"

"Okay, yeah. But my parents really did die and I do live on the streets."

"Well, that sucks."

"Indeed."

The two boys sat there, eating their apples in silence for a long while. Neither of them said anything, but the silence was enough. "So," Felix eventually said. "Are you still going to report me?"

"No. I don't really see a reason to," James replied. He picked up some of the food Felix had gotten and handed them back to him. "Just don't steal from here again."

"Or you'll report me?"

"Or someone else may catch you and you may not be so lucky."

"Okay, got it." He went to the window and climbed up to it. "Maybe I'll see you some other time."

"Maybe," James replied.

"See you." Without waiting for a reply, he jumped out of the window.

Over the next few months, James worked at the restaurant and nearly every day, Felix came by to visit. He couldn't let him have _all_ the food, but he did give Felix an apple or bread. Whenever he was on break, the two would play games and tell stories. Felix always told the story of a place called Neverland. A place where children could go in their sleep to escape reality. Where anything could happen, even being able to fly. The more he heard about it, the more James wanted to go.

He never expected it to be real.

* * *

**Monkey: Does that count as a cliffhanger? I don't think so. But I hope the chapters will be long and I'm hoping to post them up quickly. Not sure if I can do it daily, though. I'll do my best! So click on the little review box down there to leave me your thoughts on the chapter! Hope you liked the chapter, bai!**


	3. Chapter 2

**Monkey: My advice to you, readers: DO NOT WATCH THE PREVIOUS EPISODES OF SEASON 3 AFTER WATCHING "THINK LOVELY THOUGHTS". You will regret it.**

**Nico: Why?**

**Monkey: Well, since I'm writing this story, every time I watch a previous episode and I pick up on all the little hints, I keep yelling at the screen silently. They make it so that Rumple and Peter are like brothers or old friends, so when Peter is revealed to be his father, it doesn't make a lot of sense in context of the story!**

**Leo: Monkey. Calm down.**

**Monkey: (sighs) Sorry. If my readers want the full rant, they can just PM me. Now for the review replies!**

**KillerJill04: **I knew Felix was a fan favorite, so I brought him into the story! And also, he and Pan seemed close, so I gave them a meeting!

**Honeydewmelon56:** Yep, there's Felix! And thanks for calling this the best Pan AU backstory fic you've read so far! That means a lot.

**readandwrite4evernever20: **I did have a lovely day, thank you! And you're welcome for updating.

**AlexandreaLily107: **I've gotten a lot of questions about the doll and my answer is this: YES. THE DOLL WILL BE IMPORTANT. Just be patient, my good readers. And thanks!

**Monkey: Thanks, you guys, for all the support. I really appreciate it. Now to the disclaimer!**

**Leo: Monkey doesn't own anything except for a couple of minor OC's that pop up in this chapter and the plot.**

**Monkey: And don't forget to REVIEW!**

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Two years passed relatively quickly. With the money he earned, James was able to keep his family fed and . . . well, _satisfied_ would be a better term than _happy_. Rumple had also grown up fast. He was talking in no time and walking pretty soon after. James taught him how to read and write by the time he turned two and he was able to pick it up very soon. Malcolm tried to teach Rumple how to play cards, but James managed to stop him.

Felix visited the restaurant every so often. The two boys would share a loaf of bread or something whenever he came by. He even met Rumple plenty of times. The three of them would play different types of games when Felix came by. He even brought a crossbow once, but Rumple wasn't allowed to shoot in fear he may hurt someone or himself.

Even James grew in the past two years. His hair got longer and he got a little taller. Emile still didn't promote him from bus boy because he was so young, but he didn't really mind. It put food on the table, which was more than he could say Malcolm does. He was also learning more and more about surviving in the world from Felix. He taught James how to take care of yourself in a world where no one will care for you. He even offered James to come with him to travel around the kingdom. He even joked that they could be dual rogues. But James declined. He couldn't just leave Rumple, especially in the hands of his incapable father.

Overall, while James loved Rumple and living in the village, he sometimes wished he could escape and just be a kid again. He had to grow up very fast in order to take care of Rumple, so he missed the times he could be at peace. He finally got that one day. Felix was talking about Neverland again and James asked a question that had been on his mind for a long time.

"How do you get to Neverland?" he asked.

Felix swallowed his piece of bread and replied, "I don't know, actually. It's like . . . if you're really lost and alone, then you can go. I'm not sure how it works. It just kind of does."

James sighed. His longing to visit Neverland only grew by the day. The thought of never growing up and always being a kid was too tempting to pass up. Then he couldn't turn into his father: sad, old, and pathetic. At least if he could visit Neverland, he would bring Rumple with him.

Suddenly, Felix snapped his fingers and shouted, "Wait! Now I remember!"

"What?" James asked excitedly.

"You have to think lovely thoughts at night, and then you can dream about going there."

"Is that it?"

"The biggest thing is that you _have_ to believe in Neverland. Otherwise, you can't go there."

"Okay . . . belief. Got it." He stared at his half of the loaf of bread as Felix swallowed the rest of his.

Later that night, after Rumple had fallen asleep, James sat by the window, staring up at the sky. There weren't any clouds, so James could see all the stars. It was such a beautiful sight to see the stars, but there weren't as many as there were at his old village. But that didn't matter since he was only focusing on two stars: a huge star just near the new moon, and the second star to the right. He looked at the second star and squeezed his eyes shut, the two words at the tip of his tongue just waiting for him to say them.

"I believe," he whispered. He looked up at the star again and waited.

He waited for a solid ten minutes for something to happen. Anything. After a while, he realized that nothing was going to happen and laid down in his bed. Another disappointing night. He had hoped and wished and dreamed for something to take him to Neverland and away from his father, but of course, nothing came. He believed in Neverland. He really did.

But, he told himself to do what Felix said: to think lovely thoughts. And as he did, he slowly drifted off into sleep.

* * *

The next thing he knew, he was floating. At least, that's what it felt like. Up was down, left was right, and the sky was suddenly the ground. Nothing felt right and yet it felt exactly as it should be. He wasn't moving anywhere, just floating stationary in one spot, but he didn't know where that was. Then he began moving. It wasn't natural, though. It felt like something was pulling him, but instead of fighting back, he let it pull him. It didn't feel dangerous or something of a threat. It felt . . . comforting. Friendly, almost.

As he was getting pulled, he saw something. Those two stars in the sky were getting bigger. Or . . . he was getting closer. Yes, that was definitely it. He was getting closer to the stars. If he remembered what Felix had said about traveling to Neverland it was "the second star to the right and straight on 'til morning". If this was the case, then how long until morning? Or was time different? It was strange and it didn't feel real, but he just kept getting pulled straight through the star.

Then everything was solid again. His eyes shot open only to find himself on some kind of beach. For a second, he panicked. He shot up into a sitting position and nearly jumped back. Then he looked around. It was morning. It didn't feel like he was asleep for long. There were also trees around him of all different sorts, even some he'd never seen before. But it looked empty. The place didn't feel empty, though. Like there was someone else there, watching him.

He got up and dusted himself off. It definitely didn't feel like a dream. Did he come here for real? Was it some kind of magic? It didn't register in his mind that his clothes felt different. He looked down and saw that his pajamas had disappeared only to be replaced by something else. He was instead wearing a dark green and brown shirt and somewhat tight brown pants, though he had to admit they were comfortable. He was also wearing a light brown cloak and a green scarf. The fabric was soft and very snug, something he'd want to wear on a regular basis. He looked down at his feet and saw he was barefoot, though he didn't mind too much.

He looked at the forest and debated between trying to find a way off the island and going off into the forest to explore. Well, if this was truly a dream, then he should know what this place was like. Especially if this was Neverland. So, he climbed up the hill from the beach and into the depths of the forest.

It was quite vast, almost totally endless. Felix described the island to feel enormous and he wasn't joking. It did feel like he was just a tiny little insect. As he hiked through, that feeling of being watched never left him. He would often look around to try to find anything, only to see nothing. After a while, he looked up at the sky and the sun didn't seem to move from before. It felt like a lot of time had passed while he walked around the island. Eventually, though, he made it to a clearing.

The trees around the clearing were different. They had larger bases and looked hollow. When James knocked on them, he could hear a sound, indicating that they were hollow. He poked his head inside one of them only to see a little boy about his age with a tuft of hazel hair inside, hugging his knees and grinning like he was hiding some sort of secret.

"What—?" he started, but the little boy shushed him, still grinning. Then he pulled James inside the tree.

"Stay quiet, mate," the boy whispered.

"Who are you? And what are you doing?" James whispered back.

"We're planning a prank."

"Okay, but that still doesn't answer my first question."

"You're new here, aren't you?"

"Where exactly is _here_ anyway? Is this Neverland?"

The boy nodded and suddenly James couldn't hold back a grin. He succeeded. There must have been tens of other children on the island from all over the world. Children who were lost and alone in the world, but found a safe haven here in their dreams.

"So, who are you pranking?" James asked the boy. "And, what's your name?"

"I'm Seth," he replied. "And we're trying to catch this one kid who visits, Felix."

"He's here?"

"Yeah, you know him?"

James nodded wordlessly. It was like everything he could ever want was right here in Neverland. This must have been either a blessing of the gods or their cruelest joke yet. He really hoped it was the former rather than the ladder.

Seth grinned though, "Well, then you can help us out. We're going to jump out at him and scare him."

James scoffed, "Is that it? That's kind of weak."

"Well, what else can we do?"

He smirked, "Where are the other boys? I have an idea."

James went from tree to tree, explaining the new plan. When he heard footsteps, he gave out the signal: a bird call his mother taught him. Then all the children came out of the tree stumps and threw all sorts of strange things they came up with using their imaginations. James leaned on one of the trees and watched the strange sight, clutching his stomach in laughter. Once the children were done harassing Felix, the older boy looked to James.

"Oh, ha, ha, very funny," he said sarcastically, now covered in strange goop and something that looked like cake frosting, for some odd reason.

James caught his breath and looked to Felix and said, "Yes, that was."

"So," he said as he wiped goo out of his face. "You finally made it. Welcome to Neverland!"

James smiled. It was the first real smile he was able to muster in a long time and it felt good. For the rest of the time, they all played games and sang songs and explored the island. It felt good to be free of all his responsibilities. He didn't have to deal with having a job, being low on money, his father's drinking and gambling problem, none of it. It all just disappeared into the morning sky.

After a while, James and Seth climbed up the mountain. It was a long hike and tiring, but the both of them were grinning and joking all the way. When they arrived at the top, James could hear the sound of some sort of waterfall, but it was muffled by something. He saw a huge patch of thorn bushes and looked to Seth.

"What kind of plant is this?" he asked.

"I don't know," Seth replied. "But it definitely doesn't look good. Maybe we should go back."

"But if this is a new species of plants, then we should investigate. We could be discoverers. Explorers!"

"James, this isn't like one of your games, someone could get hurt."

"Where's your sense of adventure? Besides, we'll be fine. After all, in the morning, don't we just go back to our normal lives, safe and sound?"

Without waiting for a response, he went to the thorn bushes and took a closer look. There was some sort of dark, ink-like liquid dripping from some of the thorns. He carefully grabbed a piece of a branch that didn't have thorns on it and tried to tear it off. When that didn't work, he closed his eyes and imagined a small knife. He looked at his free hand and saw a simple knife, something you could buy from a local merchant. James then sawed at the thorn branch, breaking it off.

"James, I wouldn't," Seth warned.

"I'll be careful," James replied as he got up. "What is this anyway?"

"Let me take a look." He walked over and looked it over. "The liquid looks like some kind of poison. It looks deadly, we should put it down and go back."

"Well, if it is a deadly poison, there's only one way to find out."

"You aren't serious are you?"

"Of course not." James tossed the branch away like it was in fire. "I'm not that stupid."

"Good," Seth sighed in relief.

"Let's head back before the others get worried."

As the two of them were walking, however, James tripped on a rock and fell forward. He managed to avoid falling on his face, but he stepped on a lower branch of thorns. He jumped back, causing him to land flat on his butt. He pulled his bare foot to take a look at the wound. Little dots of blood began to bloom on the center of his foot, the skin around it turning an irritated red. Almost seconds later, the veins around the pricks turned black. He and Seth shared a worried look and James tried to get up, but a wave of dizziness hit as well as the pain in his foot really settled in and he nearly collapsed if not for Seth who was able to grab him. He helped James to a nearby rock where he leaned on as he felt the poison burning throughout his foot and going up his ankle, towards the calf of his leg.

"Seth," he choked out through the pain. "Go get help. Now."

"I can't just leave you here!" Seth cried.

"You don't know what this is. My best chance is if you run as fast as you can to get help."

It took a minute, but eventually Seth nodded, "Okay. I'll come back for you soon. I promise!"

He reluctantly ran off as fast as his feet could take him, leaving James against the rock. The poison was traveling fast through his veins, up his leg and towards his thigh. Sooner or later, it would reach his heart. Deep down inside, James knew that he was most likely not going to survive. Part of him wanted to whack himself upside the head for being so stupid and careless. The other part of him was too preoccupied with trying to figure out a cure for whatever this strange poison was. In the end, he knew that there was no hope.

As he felt his blood turn into fire, James thought about Rumplestiltskin. He thought about how he never got the chance to say goodbye. Just the thought of leaving him behind with Malcolm was enough to make him furious at himself for being so headstrong. He looked up at the sky to see the sun still hadn't moved. He stared up at it, trying to ignore the pain. As the poison continued to go up through his leg and inching closer to his heart, he still couldn't shake the feeling that he wasn't completely alone.

Just when the pain was getting close to unbearable, something moved out of the corner of his eye. He looked around as best as he could.

"Who's there?" he called weakly.

No one responded, but something moved.

"Show yourself . . ."

_Are you trying to be threatening?_ a low voice asked. It sent shivers down James' spine.

"Wh . . . who are you?"

_I am the only resident of Neverland_, the voice said.

"But I thought—"

_Neverland is a place for children to _visit_, not stay. I am the only one who lives here._

Something moved in the shadows and a two glowing yellow eyes could be seen. Then a humanoid shape formed in the darkness of the forest. Suddenly, something flew out. It looked human, but at the same time, it wasn't.

"What are you?" James asked.

_I'm a shadow_, it replied.

"Whose shadow?"

_I don't belong to anyone. And do you really think you should be talking when you're dying?_

"Probably not, but I'm probably a goner anyway. Agh!" He felt something pricking at his heart. It was like a needle was stuck straight into his heart and fire begun to leak in.

_The poison would definitely kill you . . . if you weren't a child._

"What?"

But before the shadow could answer properly, another jolt of pain hammered at his chest. The shadow didn't have a face other than those two gleaming eyes, but it looked as if it was smirking. It flew off and James tried to call out for it, but he couldn't muster up the strength. His energy was slipping away and he could feel his heartbeat slowing down. He leaned back onto the rock again as the pain just increased.

With all his strength gone, he closed his eyes and felt himself drift right into sleep.

* * *

**Monkey: DON'T PANIC. He's not dead! Kind of. Sort of. Ish. Well, he'll live, otherwise I don't have a story. Hope you liked the chapter. I'm thinking I do weekly updates instead of daily ones since I can't write a chapter that quickly. But the next chapter should be up by Tuesday, Wednesday at the latest. So, don't forget to REVIEW in the box below! Have a good day! Drive safely! Don't forget to brush your teeth! I'll shut up now!**


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